1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to a method for prohibiting a person with a facial mask to operate an automatic teller machine, in particular to one which applies to an automatic teller machine by identifying a genuine human face based on an image analysis in conjunction with the temperature of the human face.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is usual that a bank usually arranges multiple automatic teller machines (so called ATMs) to serve its clients. However, the ATM with a deposit of considerable money is usually unattended and facilely becomes a perfect target for the outlaw. Assume that a security system adapted to the ATM is sufficient to identify the outlaw, the possibility of the loot ATM might be minimized.
With regard to the current security system, 24H videotape to monitor the ATM is usually made available to help the police solve the case while the ATM is broken-in. Whereas, the difficulty attendant with the operation of the security system is that the videotaped image would be rendered useless for failing to clearly identify the look or appearance of the outlaw if the outlaw wears a mouth mask or a helmet.
An improvement is made by the present inventor to provide an image identification means by judging if the ATM user gives the facial features.
If yes, the user is authorized to use the ATM; if not, the alarm process is activated to trigger the protection procedure that intends to identify if the user is a legal one and thus to frustrate the criminality. However, if the outlaw wears a facial mask, he or she may fool the detection of facial features. The security system still fails to identify facial features of the outlaw from the image identification.
Commonly, in view of the human being maintains constant body temperature, the temperature of his/her face that belongs to a part of the human body is also close to the body temperature. Since the mask is not part of the human body, temperature thereof close to the ambient temperature would somewhat distinguish from the body temperature of a human being. Taking advantage of this difference, the inventor of the present invention excludes the possibility of fooling the detection due to the facial mask wearing and promotes to identify a legal subject by applying an image identification accompanying with the measurement of body temperature.
As an example of a conventional facial identification, U.S. Pat. No. 6,529,617 mainly discloses a security system to serve identification via a thermal image associated with a medical image. Such system essentially establishes the identification of the facial features by the thermal image constructed of complex thermal conditions. It is known to be applicable in a closed place, for instance applied for recognizing some patients with special diseases in a hospital. Even through the conventional system requires high cost, it still allowably contributes to the concern of the control of the disease infection.
As a further example of a conventional identification, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2002/0136435 teaches a dual band biometric identification system which applies a visual camera and an IR camera to respectively record the optical and infrared (thermal) images of experimental subjects. According to the cross validations between those recorded images and currently pre-saved targets in the data, this system accurately conduces to identifying if the experimental subject fits with the target reference in the data.
The aforementioned two conventional inventions primarily serve as “key” identifications adapted to a closed place and both take advantage of dual inspecting systems to promote the accuracy. It is believed that they may require higher cost and complex equipments as well as algorithm, whereas such complex identification is unable to be well adapted for the ATM provided with a “threshold” facial identification.
Furthermore, with respect to the current ATM circumstance, it is well known to install visual cameras around the ATMs and the infrared detecting device therearound for turning on a luminous means while sensing ATM users, but it fails to combine the afore equipments to identify the genuine human face.